Though we weren’t looking forward to the drive out, we were convinced that it couldn’t be worse than the drive in to Monteverde. And we were right. It was only “just as bad”. An unexpected surprise was spotting 3 howler monkeys hanging out in a tree right next to the road. We didn’t actually spot them so much as hear them. The male howled at us as we drove past. We stopped, got out with the binoculars and the camera and got a great view of the male. Natalie engaged him in a howling session which Natalie seemed to enjoy more than the grumpy monkey.
Eventually we reached paved roads again. Rejoice! But the joy soon faded with the realization that the remainder of our trip would be on winding two-lane mountain roads. And, no matter how many slow plodding trucks we risked our lives passing, we invariably wound up behind another one. We arrived at our destination not a moment too soon, the Xandari Resort and Spa. We were able to check in upon arrival and after getting our bags to our room, headed straight for the open-air restaurant. Xandari was our stopover between rainforests. This resort, set in the hills has beautiful views of Alajuela, a suberb of the Capital City, San Jose. We were joined at lunch by the resident cat that managed to snag a good size chunk of Natalie’s chicken off the table! Edie retired to the room to relax and read a bit, while Chris and Natalie explored the 40-acre resort grounds (once a coffee plantation) hiking a hilly trail discovering an exotic sculpture garden, three beautiful waterfalls, an organic garden and a bamboo forest. The unique animal sighting of the day was an armadillo waddling along the trail.
For dinner we decided to be a little adventurous and explore the town of Alajuela. Based upon a recommendation from the resort staff we braved the rain and a wild taxi ride to get to a restaurant called La Mansarda. This second floor restaurant was quite lively, with a very accommodating wait-staff. Very laid-back, and as far as we could tell truly authentic (and delicious) Tico food. The highlight of the evening though was the live music. A solo guitar player treated us to hits by Chris Isaak, the Beatles and an oddly cool medley of Pink Floyd.
The next morning we checked out and had a leisurely transfer to the airport. We flew on Sansa Air in a small prop plane that holds about 12 people. The weather was cloudy but our flight was smooth and the views beautiful. We were supposed to land first at Drake’s Bay, but the local weather forced the plane to skip that stop and head straight to Puerto Jimenez, our destination. Hooray for us, a non-stop flight! (and too bad for the other 8 people on the plane who were hoping to go to Drake’s Bay. We like to think they got there eventually).
We landed in the rain (shock! In Costa Rica!) and an El Remanso welcoming committee was waiting for us. They loaded us into their Land Rover and we headed out. The hour-long drive (over unpaved roads) took us aross rickety bridges over rivers, through rivers where there were no bridges, up steep muddy hills and past miles of cattle ranches. We were somewhat surprised at all the cattle since we had formed the image of the Osa Peninsula in our minds as completely untouched. But, just as the rest of Costa Rica, the untouched (if such a thing really exists) is held in pockets identified as National Parks. Leaving the farmland behind we finally entered the jungle. Several miles later we reached Our lodge, El Remanso.
See More Photos taken between Monteverde and Osa!
The Next Day: Costa Rica: El Remanso
The Whole Trip: Costa Rica: The Summary